The Banal Truth About IBM's Artificial Intelligence?

A totally expected but downright disheartening press release this morning from the IBM Watson team. Cashing in on the post-Thanksgiving, Black Friday shopping madness, IBM’s Watson supercomputing, machine learning, AI platform has vomited out a meaningless list of the ‘100 consumer electronics’. Via the IBM Watson Trend app, IBM has ‘discovered’ that consumers are loving Nike shoes, Star Wars droids and hoverboards. Really? We really need Watson to tell us this? “Watson discovered consumers are flocking to brands that offer “barefoot running” or “natural running” shoes marketed to help prevent injury,” said IBM. “Watson found that Nike shoe owners in particular are talking about Nike’s Free, the Air Max and Flyknit Racing Shoes, which offer color, design and versatility as both athletic and casual footwear.” Moreover, Watson has identified “growing…